#28 Wintery Blues
I don't know about you - but right now it feels like we're stuck in the longest, dullest, winter of all time. The days are short, nights are long and dark, and we binged all the good entertainment in the first two lockdowns.
So it's no surprise that like everyone I speak to, I’m bored. But what is a surprise that I'm struggling to find relief from that boredom by picking up the controller right now. And that wasn’t something I thought was possible - I’ve been playing and loving games since my dad gave me my first computer as a small child.
But after finishing a run of blockbusters I could have played non-stop - Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Spider-Man:Miles Morales and even the much maligned Cyberpunk 2077 - I’m now struggling to find something I’m excited to play next.
Which is of course ridiculous - there are hundreds of games out there to play - including dozens of acclaimed titles which are almost certainly worth my time. And that’s not to mention all the free ones which came with my PlayStation 5. And yet, nothing is grabbing my attention. I made a mistake by turning to Resident Evil 7 which I hoped would be the perfect palate cleanser after a series of epic adventures. Instead, it’s claustrophobic, first person exploration of the haunted house to end all haunted houses left me with nothing more than an overly raised heart rate and more extra anxiety than anyone needs in the midst of a lockdown.
So the hunt continues. The thing is - not knowing what to play is nothing new. The difference from past occasions is I’m lacking an anchor game - something I’m happy to repeat the same old patterns in day after day. For years, that game was FIFA - but crucially, it was always FIFA with a flatmate. Playing it solo, just feels a bit sad and pointless - I don’t get the same joy and rush of endorphins from playing the computer as I would from half an hour of play with a friend.
In the first lockdown, that anchor game was Animal Crossing - the perfect escape from a Spring stuck indoors. It wasn’t just that the game let you escape to a tropical island - it’s that it presented you with a never ending series of small victories and dopamine boosts that you could keep revisiting day after day.
I think that’s what I’m missing in this lockdown - it’s not the absence of one flagship title to while away my entertainment hours on. I’m sure I’ll find one of these - either in my back catalogue of unplayed games or through a lengthy browse of the PlayStation store for hidden gems. It’s a hunt I’ll be repeating on a regular basis this year - the release calendar for 2021 is looking understandable bleak as developers deal with pandemic enforced delays.
But I can live without blockbusters, particularly when there’s such a valid reason for their absence. What I’m missing is the equivalent of a 20 minute comedy - something I can turn to for a guaranteed quick dose of enjoyment that will leave me feeling more relaxed and happier than I was before picking up my controller.
What I need is a game where nothing really changes and I’m not having to think too much about what i’m doing - and crucially knowing that I’m, not making things worse if I have a bad 20 minutes of gameplay. It’s popcorn viewing but for my fingers as much as my brain.
It also needs to be something new - Animal Crossing has lost all its appeal, while FIFA without someone sat next to me to laugh at just doesn’t feel right. It doesn't even need to be an objectively great game - just something I want to spend a little time with day after day.
I'm hoping it won't take long to find that game - or if that fails find a new blockbuster I want to sink hours into. And in the meantime, i guess it's time to find a new TV show.
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